FAQs On Nutrition and Exercise

Do I have to go on a diet to lose weight?

Do I have to give up my favorite foods in order to live a healthy life?

I know that I should exercise in order to get fit and healthy, but who has the time?

OK, I want to lose weight. Do I have to buy special food or supplements to do that?

What if I can't give up refined foods (snack, fast foods) and soft drinks?

How can I make healthier food choices for myself and my family?

Aren't you making too big an issue over nutriton and exercise?

Should I eat before I exercise?

Can I ever be too old to exercise?

Do I have to become a vegetarian in order to become healthy?

Can I burn fat from just one part of my body (AKA 'spot reducing')?

What is the secret to weight loss?

Will my muscles change to fat if I stop working out?

Once I start a weight loss and exercise program, how do I stay consistent?

Where can I purchase IP6 (rice bran extract)?

Why is the flu vaccine ineffective against the elderly?

Will a woman get big muscles from lifting weights?

No. Diets don't work. There are dozens of diets and diet plans on the market. Although you will lose some weight on almost all of them, if you fall from any one of them you will gain that weight back along with an additional amount. What is needed is a change in lifestyle. That begins in the mind. You have to want to to make a change for the better. It then is a no-brainer that more fruits and vegetables and water is needed in your food plan. It is also easier to give up fast food restaurants and sodas, and eat more home cooked meals.

The nutritional basis of a healthy lifestyle is you controlling food and not allowing it to control you. If you allow food to control you then food is your god. That being said, you can indulge in your favorite treat(s) once in a while. Remember though that this is an occasional treat and not a license to allow old habits to regain their foothold in your life. If you do happen to fall off the wagon, don't condemn yourself and become overly stressed over it. It can and does happen. Just compose yourself and get right back on your healthy lifestyle. Just don't use the relapse as an excuse to give up.

You are not alone. Many people know what they should do, but because of time pressures, they don't! However, it is imperative that you carve some time out on a daily basis to exercise. Why is it important? Well, exercise, along with good nutrition, will assure you of a healthy body and keep you out of the hospital. You will also save money from having to buy expensive prescription drugs. A healthy YOU will be there for family and everyone else who depends on you. Besides all that, you can't accomplish your goals in life by being sickly all the time. In truth, nobody nowadays has the time to include anything else in their schedules. With exercise however you HAVE TO MAKE THE TIME!

No. Special foods and all but a few supplements are not needed. Once all refined foods such as white rice, breads, and sugar are removed from the diet, and plenty of water, fruits, vegetables, and whole grains added, the weight will melt off. This is not to say you won't need vitamins or certain other supplements such as fish oil or omega 3 tablets. Our fruits and vegetables don't have the amount of vitamins and minerals and othe rnutrients that they had when your grandparents were growing up. This is due to topsoil depletion, and to pesticides and fungicides used in modern farming. If meats are restricted to fish and chicken and turkey breasts, and your other foods are plant based, you will shed pounds. Of course you still have to be concerned with portion sizes even when you eat healthy.

Can't or won't? Study after study has shown that refined foods and soft drinks (fruit drinks, juices, regular and diet sodas) contribute to America's, and the world's, steadily climbing obesity epidemic. They are also contributing factors to cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer's disease and other crippling medical issues. You have to be honest with yourself.

First of all you should take the time to carefully read food ingredient labels ingredient labels. Don;t buy anything that has the following ingredients: a) MSG (monosidium glutamate) b)hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils c) high fructose corn syrup and d)artificial colors or preservatives. These ingredients not only make you gain unhealthy weight, but they also increase you risk of diabetes, high blood pressure, developing certain cancers and heart disease and more. Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables and drink lots of water. Wean yourself and your children off all sodas, including diet sodeas. Sodas and fruit drinks contain high amounts of sugar. Medical studies have shown that diseases such as cancer thrive on sugar.

Unfortunately not. A 2006 study just came out which listed the 'fattest' states in the country. This survey looked at obesity. In the 10 fattest states, obesity rates ranged from 27 percent in Texas to 31 percent in Mississippi. The United States ranked number 9 in the world in overweight population!

Yes. This is particularly important if you exercise in the morning. When you sleep your body fasts. That's why the first meal of the day is called breakfast. The body needs fuel to burn. Wait at least an hour after eating to begin exercising. Your meal should consist of a protein (eggs, protein drink, etc.) and a carb (whole grain cereal ora piece of fruit for instance.) Don't make this meal heavy.

No. I lift weights at Diamond Gym in Maplewood, New Jersey and I know two members who are senior citizens. One gentleman is 80 years old and the other is 84 years old.

I would just caution that if you haven't exercised in a while, or at all, you get a medical clearance from your doctor. Exercise strengthens and conditions a body. It is the lack of exercise which predisposes a body to break down, get sick, and die prematurally.

No. Meat can be included in the diet. However you should be selective. Red meats (beef, liver and pork) should be kept to a minimum for two reasons. One is that it is high in saturated fat; point number 2 is that red meat is high in iron.

Much better sources of animal meat are organic chicken and turkey breasts, and wild fish (just be aware that fish may carry high levels of mercury and PCBs.) Avoid veggie and soy burgers because they contain monosodium glutamate (MSG.)

No. Spot reducing is a myth. It isn't possible to burn fat from, say for instance, your stomach without affecting the rest of your body.

In reality there is no secret to weight loss. You just do what you do naturally--eat! The reason why diets fail is that they in one way or another seek to 'trick' the body. Whether the diet is low carb, low fat, or low calorie (skipping meals or eating like a bird)--they all work against the body (See...)

In addition to working in unison with the body, a return to unprocessed, unrefined, whole food is mandatory. Our modern food supply is saturated with pesticides, herbicides, hormones, antibiotics, artificial sweeteners, artificial preservatives, and artificial colors. All these synthetic and toxic chemicals contribute unwanted and dangerous fat to your waistline.

Whole, unpolluted food is the food of our ancestors. It was no secret to them, and it shouldn't be to us.

This has been a common misconception. Fat and muscle are two entirely different biological components. One can't change into another. What does happen though is almost as bad.

Muscle is metabolically active in that it constantly burns calories. It burns approximately three times as many calories as fat does.

First of all, consistency depends on you having a forgiving attitude if you fall off the weight loss food menu. Most dieters beat themselves up mercilessly when they eat forbidden foods. You can avoid this by having regular 'cheat' days. On a cheat day, eat your favorite foods to your heart's content.

The word/concept that has helped me over the decades is discipline. I call this the 'D' word. Consistency will lead to discipline and discipline will lead to consistency. This is a sure-fire way that is sure to work for you.

IP6 (rice bran extract) can be purchased at most health food stores. These stores throughout the country carry it under different brand names as a dietary supplement.

The majority of IP6 is derived from cereal. Corn has the highest concentration at 6 percent; sesame has 5 percent, wheat varies between 2 and 3 percent, and rice has 2 percent.

It is unfortunate that Americans have been conditioned to believe in and rely on vaccinations to protect them from the flu. There is simply no compelling evidence that flu vaccines work for anyone-- let alone the elderly or the very young.

A strong immune system, not vaccines, is the answer to the flu. Vaccines have not been proven effective for anyone. Many are dangerous because of ingredients like mercury or aluminum (which has been linked to Alzheimer's disease.)

No. The potential to build large muscles through lifting weights is largely confined to men because they carry more of the hormone testosterone than women. Although some women bodybuilders/powerlifters manage to build huge muscles, this is the exception rather than the rule.